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What Denver Police Officers Are Being Accused of Now

Deck

Just days after a Denver Police officer was accused of intimidating a slow-moving McDonald's worker by flashing a gun (via Fox 31), the department's officers are mired in yet another case rife with sensational allegations of abuse. This time, the accusers (five men) say officers punched and kicked them, slammed their heads on the ground, and even kept beating them after the handcuffs were on (via 9News). Photos show men with blackened eyes, bloody mouths, and chipped teeth. The men have filed lawsuits alleging excessive force, and attorney Doug Romero, who is representing them, says the department has a "disturbing pattern of practice." In April, for instance, after 28-year-old James Watkins admittedly told officers "you suck" outside the Lodo Bar and Grill, he claims they followed him to his car and then attacked him. "I had my hands up and was crying, you know. And then they got on top of me on the ground and were torturing me," says Watkins, who was initially charged with felony assault on an officer. Video shows his head being slammed to the ground. Denver officers have received 149 complaints of unnecessary force, and 58 were investigated by the department's Internal Affairs Bureau. No allegations were sustained.